Femtocells—building-based wireless access points interfaced with a wired broadband network—are traditionally deployed to improve indoor wireless coverage, and to offload a mobility radio access network (RAN) operated by a wireless service provider. Improved indoor coverage includes stronger signal and improved reception (e.g., voice, sound, or data), ease of session or call initiation, and session or call retention as well. Offloading a RAN reduces operational and transport costs for the service provider since a lesser number of end users utilizes over-the-air radio resources (e.g., radio frequency channels), which are typically limited. With the rapid increase in utilization of communications networks and/or devices, mobile data communications have been continually evolving due to increasing requirements of workforce mobility, and, services provided by femtocells can be extended beyond indoor coverage enhancement; for example, femtocells can be utilized in areas wherein macro coverage is not poor or weak.
Typically, the femtocell includes a femto access point (FAP) that connects to a broadband router, provides a strong wireless cell signal in a femtocell coverage area, and facilitates voice and/or data between a user equipment (UE) the mobile carrier's network via the broadband network. In particular, the broadband network provides access to the Internet by employing a digital subscriber line (DSL) or cable modem. If a femtocell is connected to a broadband service with an upload and/or download speed that is slower than minimum femtocell broadband speed requirements, the customer can experience problems, such as, inability to activate the femtocell, poor call quality, and/or dropped calls.
Majority of customers are unaware of their current broadband speed and typically have no idea if their femtocell performance problems are due to a slow broadband connection. This makes diagnosing and correcting femtocell performance problems caused by slow broadband speed very difficult. Inaccurate diagnostics and errors in correcting femtocell performance problems can lead to tedious troubleshooting and negatively impact customer satisfaction.